Posted on 11/08/2017 10:56:52 AM PST by ProtectOurFreedom
There are two big downsides - people in ordinary occupations cannot find housing. Even well paid tech people struggle. The other big one is clogged roads. It’s never been so bad as it is today. With the HUGE apartment construction boom all along El Camino, 237, San Antonio in MV, etc and everybody trying to get to 101, Foothill or 280, everything is at a standstill. Small secondary roads that had few cars are now clogged up and crawling.
The things that made it so attractive are, unfortunately, killing it. And it’s getting much worse with the huge amount of on-going construction. There are four giant cranes over at the north end of Moffett Field right now — probably more Googleplex expansion.
Having retired a few months ago and not having to handle that commute has done wonders for my peace of mind and blood pressure!
Enjoyed your Pictures and Story, but my favorite part of the post was... “We went up Ranch Road in Moss Beach many Beautiful horse ranches....”. A smile came to my Face automatically as my mind raced with Memories. Thank you so much for sharing your Treks for those of us who have driven and walked those paths it is a bit of our pasts that we forget about until reminded.
Thanks for your kind words. These hiking and photo posts do indeed bring back a lot of memories to many people here. My daughter rode from age 6 through college, so we spent a lot of time at barns and training rings. It was really nice seeing all the equestrian facilities along Ranch Road - good memories for me as well.
It’s also fun for people who haven’t been to California to enjoy some of our magnificent places and vistas.
Compare that to LA, which pushed the Harbor freeway right through the (aging) premier housing region from the 1890s (Bunker Hill). Downtown LA never had a chance to gentrify, and once it did finally begin, it took place in the old financial district in the flats, rather than the surrounding foothills.
Perhaps the best example of a dramatic turn around in real estate values is the demolition of the Octavia on/off ramps into Hayes valley. Astute real estate investors realized that once the freeway came down, the least desirable property would be instantly transformed into some of the most demanded homes. It's no mistake a small ghetto community still exists, along with some public housing, from the days when no one in their right mind wanted to live in the part of the Western addition.
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In my mind, traffic has always been bad. That is, demand has always exceeded capacity. As a child, I remember when the 280/85 was originally opened to alleviate pressure on the 101. The 85 stopped @ Stephens creek and wasn't pushed through for decades, resulting in huge traffic jams on the surface streets and expressways. Now that it's been open for awhile, the traffic once again simply overwhelms the capacity.
It's one of the negatives of living in a region that is still experiencing high growth. The way the area around China basin is exploding, I don't see any reason why it should ever stop. Of course, that soft silty landfill does pose a leaning tower of Pisa problem if the foundation isn't set in bedrock 150' below. LOL
Real estate has always been just out of reach. I remember when HP opened a plant in the 70s up near Sac supposedly to bleed off housing pressure. Same too going down Coyote valley towards Gilroy. Result? The Bay area is like LA, with a contiguous sprawl ranging a 100 miles.
I don't know if what made Calif desirable is killing it. I do know there's a ton more protected open space - a lot from various conservatories - than when I was growing up. What's the history of the area you went hiking? It was probably private ranching/timber land at some point.
I went to high school in Chesterfield, MO, a western suburb of St. Louis. After finishing the main interstate highways, the “peripherals” were built around cities. I-270 largely circled St. Louis. When it was completed and they opened it, I remember the nearby cities were all saying their traffic woes were cured for 20 years. You know what happened...within 6 or 9 months, traffic on I-270 was at the 20 year projection point and new construction was started everywhere near I-270 on the west side of the city.
Ping
That last one turned out pretty well, even without the filter.
Yeah, not bad. Love the huge patch of sunlight reflection in the middle. I got my panorama rig today from the “Nodal Ninja” company. Looking forward to trying it out and creating multi row panorama shots. Need to find a better place to host them on the web so I can put low or medium res on FR and make them clickable to the high res photo on some photo site.
Beautiful looking area. Thanks for the ping.
I especially liked the pic where the water was down in the lows and off in the distance.
Just a unique set of circumstances placing the state at the right latitude with a (very) cold ocean offshore. Add in the collision of tectonic plates and the resulting mountains, and voila.
The very earliest settlers after the 49ers tried to convey images to folks back home. Finally, once the rail spur was complete, everyone got a clue, resulting in the first land rush to SoCal in 1887. There seems to be dozens of cities around Pasadena that all incorporated that same year: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41168912?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
I moved down to SoCal to go to college about the time you moved out from MO (1979?). I've worked in SF and SoCal, and still travel back & forth for both business and leisure. My parents still live in the same house I grew up in in the west valley (south of the 85). They are some of the last 'regular' professionals (doctors, engineers) in a neighborhood now practically 100% overseas immigrant financed by family/country funds.
What a long strange trip it's been; but I don't see any reason for any change. If you own real estate, never sell, just rent if you have the itch to check out other places.
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